Jelly Roll Smashes CMA Trophy

Prior to his first-ever Grammy nominations for next year’s ceremony, Jelly Roll received a different award: the Country Music Association (CMA) Award for Best New Artist. And then he dropped it.

The unfortunate incident occurred backstage at the Nashville Bridgestone Arena, shattering the glass trophy. “I'm so embarrassed!” Jelly Roll told ET Online on the red carpet. “I was so excited. I was swinging it around to let somebody hold it. I've been passing it around like a bag of popcorn.”

He continued, “I feel bad. Oh God. I was worried. The first thing I said to my publicist was, ‘They're not gonna keep it from me now, are they? I'm gonna get the one with tape. Wonder how much that cost. It looked expensive.”

As the Tennessean reports, a CMA representative confirmed that the awards artists receive on stage and hold for backstage photo ops are only props – as the winners aren’t known beforehand, their names aren’t engraved on the award, so following the photos, the prop awards are handed back. Jelly Roll and his fellow winners will receive the actual awards in the mail.

At the CMA Awards last week (8 November), Jelly Roll performed twice: he opened the show with special guest Wynonna Judd for a unique rendition of Need A Favour, and closed the night with his cover of Love Can Build A Bridge (by The Judds) with K. Michelle.

A few days ago, Jelly Roll was nominated for the coveted Best New Artist award at the 2024 Grammy Awards alongside singer-songwriters Gracie Abrams, Victoria Monét and Noah Kahan, producer Fred again.., rapper Ice Spice, singer and actress Coco Jones, and blues/rock/country duo The War And Treaty.

In addition to his Best New Artist nod, Jelly Roll has been nominated for Best Country Duo/Group Performance for Save Me (featuring Lainey Wilson).

Reacting to his first-time Grammy nominations, Jelly Roll posted an emotional video to social media where he said through tears, “The greatest honour an artist can ever hear is that they’ve been nominated for a Grammy.

“I got to hear that this morning. I haven’t cried like this since my daddy died. I tried making this video seven times, y’all. I love y’all, man, so fucking much.”